Athletes and Coaches

Asthma and Athletics
insert document here

“PROVIDING A SAFE ENVIRONMENT”
Every effort must be made to reduce the likelihood of an asthma emergency and to ensure prompt emergency treatment, if necessary. This is a shared responsibility between the student, parent, athletic staff, school health personnel, and the student’s health care provider.
Athletic staff need to:
• Know of students who have breathing difficulties.
• Always respect the student’s report concerning trouble breathing.
• Request a copy of the student’s Asthma Action Plan or Emergency Care Plan from the school nurse, student, parent or health care provider.
• Encourage students to take their prescribed medication(s) per health care provider orders/action plan.
• Promptly communicate any concerns to the parent and school nurse that a student’s asthma is limiting his/her ability to participate fully in physical activities.
• Follow emergency procedures if a student develops an asthma episode. A severe asthma episode is a medical emergency and can be fatal if not treated
Students with asthma should:
• Take responsibility for their health and safety by knowing asthma symptoms and taking asthma medicines as ordered.
• Recognize signs that medicine/inhaler is not working and seek adult assistance immediately.
• Carry or have available appropriate reliever/rescue medication at all times and recognize when the inhaler is near empty or empty.
• Take prescribed reliever/rescue inhaler as soon as symptoms develop and only resume physical activity when symptom free.
• Report any increase in asthma symptoms to the coach during practice/competition, and to the school nurse, parent, and health care provider afterwards.
Parents should:
• Maintain an adequate supply of controller and/or reliever/rescue inhaler(s) at all times.
• Follow school procedures for self-administration of medications.
• Notify the health care provider if asthma symptoms increase or reliever/rescue inhaler is used more than two times a week for asthma symptoms.
• Keep a spare reliever/rescue inhaler in the health office for emergency use.
• Communicate all relevant information regarding their child’s asthma to the school nurse, athletic director, coach, trainer or staff as the need arises.
Link to PDF
www.nysahperd.org



“The area where we lived was real bad, a lot of shooting, couldn’t go outside…It was always dirty with garbage." 

“RCAN’s Care Coordinator encouraged us to move."

“We moved and now the apartment management always comes quick to fix problems. It is easy to clean, no dust or garbage. The children have a safe playground. Anthony’s asthma is much better, not as much problems as he had at the other place.”



Anthony’s mother


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